Finding god in a post-pandemic world

The Pandemic changed our world. Here are some things to consider…

• It set off a tsunami of mental health and emotional well-being challenges. Addiction, depression, anxiety, loneliness and general stress all increased during the pandemic.
• We all learned new words and phrases: flatten the curve, social distancing, super-spreader event, a false positive test, droplet transmission, contact tracing, shelter-in-place, and drive-thru testing…just to name a few.
• We all learned to how to accessorize a mask; or find loopholes to not wear one.
• Rampant rumors about the start of the virus, transmission, cures, vaccines, and hidden agendas keep us guessing about what the truth really is.
• We moved from asking, “Can I do this online?” to asking, “Is there any good reason to do this in person?”
• We learned how to do everything at home. We can work, send our kids to school, attend church, shop, eat out, and watch just released movies without ever walking out the front door.

Fortunately, I can think of one thing that did not change: finding God. How we speak to him, hear from him, and find him has not changed. You can find God. Here are 3 ways:

1. Confess and repent of sin

No matter what popular opinion says, the words confess and repent are not angry, judgmental words.

Confessing a sin means we are seeing eye-to-eye with God. It is actively accepting God’s code of morality as described in the Bible. It is agreeing with God that a thought, attitude, behavior, or lifestyle is wrong because God said it was wrong. When we confess, we are yielding to God’s code of conduct and agreeing with God that we broke the code.

Repenting literally means to “change one’s mind.” It is the image of a person walking into a dark room and changing their mind. Repenting would be to change directions and walk away from darkness and into the light.

Here is a little secret: It is very hard to repent without first confessing. Turning away from choices that leave God out and turning to a life of walking with God requires us to know what sins we are walking away from. I know that last sentence is bad grammar (the sentence ended with a preposition), but it is an excellent way to find God.

2. Forgive someone

We act most like our Creator when we graciously forgive someone who has offended or hurt us. Forgiving means we are choosing to cancel a debt.

When a person offends you, mistreats you, or is down-right evil to you; they take something from you that cannot be given back. They, emotionally and morally, owe you. Forgiving that person is to cancel that debt. It does not mean the wrong did not happen. It does not mean it is forgotten. It certainly does not mean you would place yourself in a position to be hurt by them again. It means you are choosing to let them off the hook. They do not owe you for the wrong they did.

Forgiving someone moves us closer to God because God is in the business of forgiving. Ideally, if God has forgiven you, then you should have the ability to forgive someone. However, if you have not experienced God’s forgiveness, it is extremely difficult to forgive the person who wronged you. Why? Because it is hard to choose forgiveness if you have not experienced the perfect forgiveness of God.

Not forgiving someone hinders us from encountering God. Hanging on to bitterness and rage, seeking revenge or getting even; these things keep us from finding God. If you want to find God, forgive the person that is in your mind right now. If you think, I just can’t forgive them, then go back to number 1.

3. Practice faith in Jesus Christ

Faith is a verb not a noun. People do not have faith. People do faith.

We practice faith every day in all kinds of situations. When we schedule a meeting, we have faith the other person will show up. When we drive our car across a bridge, we have faith the bridge will not collapse. Faith is believing that when someone says they will do something they will follow through; and it is trusting that what something was created to do will work.

When it comes to finding God, our faith must be in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Jesus becomes the filter that allows us to find and have a relationship with God.

Here is a tough pill swallow: God can only be found through the filter of Jesus Christ. He cannot be found through the filter of being a good person, or the filter of going to church, or the filter of a recognized world religion, or the filter of family ties, or the filter of philanthropy, or the filter of nature, or any other filter.

If you want to find God, place your faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

The world is a chaotic place. It will continue to change, and we will have to work harder to get along in it, but God is not distant. He wants to be found.

I’m cheering for you!